‘Knew exactly what to do:’ Officers save life of baby choking on chicken nugget at Florida mall

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — A heroic act was caught on camera, after a baby nearly choked to death at a Florida mall. Quick-thinking police officers who just happened to be nearby stepped up to save her life.

“They were there for a reason…and that reason was to save her life,” said Jaramillo De Graham.

Surveillance video shows Jaramillo De Graham at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall with her kids.

“We got hungry, and like we always do, we went to Chick-fil-A,” said Jaramillo De Graham.

The video shows the moment baby Lucia began choking on a chicken nugget.

“Looked at me with her eyes wide open and she tried to do something with her mouth. She couldn’t cough. Couldn’t do anything,” said Jaramillo De Graham.

Jaramillo De Graham tried CPR and started screaming for help. Officer Robert Ayala and Officer Rafael Guadelupe rushed over.

“Officer Ayala stepped in. I handed her to him. He sat down and so quickly started performing what he needed to do to make sure she was OK — and I sat on the floor panicked. I just wanted to make sure she was OK!” said Jaramillo De Graham.

Finally, the chicken was removed, and Lucia was able to breathe again.

“They’re our heroes. They are the best, best angels we could’ve had that day at the mall,” said Jaramillo De Graham.

Despite the close call, baby Lucia is now 100 percent healthy.

“Knew exactly what to do to save her life, so thank you so much officers because if it wasn’t for you guys, we definitely probably wouldn’t be here with our Lucia,” said Jaramillo De Graham.

Jaramillo De Graham said she recommends all parents take classes so they can properly administer CPR to children in emergency situations.

On Thursday night, Officer Ayala and Officer Guadelupe were honored by the city council and baby Lucia’s mom and dad.